A new Identity
by Vo0d0o-D0L
Summary: Self-insert featuring the Normandy crew and a couple OC's, but it is going to be set along the ME timeline. Solely a 1st person perspective. Male Shep/unkown LI (You can decide), Tali/OC romance. What would happen if somebody who knew everything of the future came into your world? Would anything change or would it be the same? Rated M for language and eventual love scenes ;)
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's note: So, i gave up on my last story. I didn't really like where it was going, though i hope those of you who have read Curiosity enjoyed it. Instead, i started work on this epic journey. It is a self-insert, inspired a little by Dazac's 'A Dance with Death' which was really good to read by the way._**

**_Do remember to review the story, all feedback is welcome though some more than others. Without further delay, I hope you enjoy the story!_**

**_Edit: Proof-read this after it was published... just changed a few grammar/spelling this and made it flow a bit more_**

**_I'm working hard on part 2, so do't forget to Review/Follow/Favorite if you enjoy!_**

* * *

It was getting late.

The stars had ascended into the sky, and what could have been a dark, black void was filled with tiny pinpricks of light, the mix of colour churning restlessly in the endless abyss. I walked around the field, my head literally in the clouds. It was the end of my time here – on holiday. I couldn't help but feel the hint of loss and regret. Not the regret from missing out, but regret that I couldn't spend more of my time here. I was going back to school in England. The days were long, hard and it was almost a damn military academy. My only escape at school was Art – painting, drawing, you name it, I could create anything; but that didn't stop the teachers from pushing my academia to the point where my brain felt as though it would burst, it didn't stop them from cramming military tactics, manoeuvres and weapons handling once a week, nor did it stop them from forcing us to be in peak physical condition all year round. But my true escape was the holidays. I did what I wanted, I was free – if only temporarily.

Bringing my head down, my neck aching from the strain of looking up for so long, a glint buried in the ground flashed up at me, momentarily blinding me. Bending down to get a better look I notice a faint glow surrounding the object – this wasn't exactly a place where many people would walk so I wasn't surprised that no one had seen it before and taken it.

I pulled on the object but it didn't budge so I started to dig, the dirt getting under my finger nails, the damp of the grass coating my arms and hands. It was… bigger than I expected it to be – it took me nearly five minutes of scraping the earth away from it to just get a look at the top of it. Curious, I find my head cocked to one side as I examine the object, its metallic surface blue light emitted from various gaps in the metal. I touched it, running my hands along its surface tracing the curve of the visible side.

I began to notice that whenever my hands neared the ground, the lights grew brighter, their warm glow bathing me in a completely unnatural, unearthly light. So I dug a bit more, only to find the source of the light – a brilliant blue orb encased by two swirling metallic circles. I reached out curiously, cautiously and as my hand neared I begun to feel weightless, the light no longer just bathing me but trapping me – even as I withdrew my hand I was being carried away, helpless. Then everything went black.

* * *

My eyes flew open and I launched myself off the gurney I had been laid on, but my legs collapsed underneath me. They felt so… useless, as did every other muscle in my body now that I had a chance to take in my surroundings and gather my thoughts. There was nobody else in the room with me, but I could hear voices coming from outside. One of them I didn't understand at all, but the other definitely spoke in English, an American accent thick on his words… But it seemed like…they were having a conversation?

"Hey!" I called out to them, hoping they could hear me through the doors. I assumed that they could when the voices stopped. "Uh... Could I have some help in here? Please?" that worked. The doors slid open, a quiet hissing sound emerging from them as the lock slid and separated. Two… people came into the room then. One was a man, wearing some sort of doctor's overalls – they were plain white with a red stripe that curved on his chest, while the other… was something else. It took me a moment to recognise who it was. "Mordin?" my eyes widened as I realised who it was that was standing in front of me, the Salarian's scars that pocked his wrinkled skin seemed to be a lot more prominent from what I could remember. I let out a groan and swore under my breath as realisation crept up on me. I felt as though I was going to pass out.

"Hmmm. Interesting; will need to question later – ask what he knows of me. No! Not just of me – of Galaxy… yes, yes. Now, need you to rest. Muscles not fully recovered, possible brain haemorrhage, chance of cancerous growth from exposure to high levels of element zero. Daniel, get sedative, induce sleep if necessary, probably not but need to be sure of rest – no more than five micrograms of melanarin, dilute with butemorol until red…. Need to look at results again." His voice was strange, poetic, fluent yet completely unintelligible. My head mirrored his coat as he whirled away out of the room, the clinking of vials as 'Daniel' placed one into what looked like an incubator.

"So…" Daniel's tone was… jealous? "How do you know the Doctor? You supposed to be some brilliant mastermind from Earth or something?"

I struggled for words, my grip failing and my hands slipping from the side of the bed, all of my weight crashing down onto the floor. I felt like such an idiot… "I… I'm sorry… Uh, could you tell me what year this is?" forcing my words out as I fought to my feet, the effort straining my voice.

Daniel looked taken aback "It's nearing 2183… there are only a few weeks until the start of the New Year…" I could feel his eyes staring at me, boring a hole into me, trying to figure out if I was joking or not.

"Oh fuck…." I muttered under my breath and sunk to my knees. Everything seemed different now. I buried my head into my hands, they were shaking, my breathing accelerated and I could feel traces of bile beginning to bubble their way up my throat, burning as they went. Before I knew it there was a needle in my arm and everything slowed down to a near standstill as whatever had been put into me worked its way through me. Unfortunately, it didn't stop me from lurching forwards as vomit threw itself from inside me, and I collapsed to the floor, this time a warm, comforting darkness embracing me as my head reached the hard metal flooring.

It was quite a long time before I woke again – or so I was told. To me it had felt as though I'd only closed my eyes for a moment and then had them forced open by an annoying white light, cutting into my sleep. Laying on the bed once more, my thoughts rushed back to me – I was in the future. But not just _any_ future, this was Mass Effect like nobody's business. Daniel caring for me, no _Mordin_ caring for me… still, I wondered where I actually was. The room I was in was white, but it was filled with artificial lighting, no sign of any sunlight at all – not even a window to look out of.

"Hey, Daniel, where am I?" my voice came out as barely a whisper. I struggled to open my eyes and then it took me even more effort to move into an upright position – but before I could move into an upright position, a pair of hands lay gently on my shoulders and pushed down slightly. I was too weak to resist and I flopped backwards, the soft bed shielding me, but there hadn't been a response. I looked around; it wasn't Daniel who was in the room, but Mordin. "Mordin, where am I?"

"Earth." Relief flooded through me and I left out a hefty sigh. I could just about hear Mordin talking to himself, flicking through… a data pad, that's what they were called. "Carbon dating shows subject roughly 170 years of age… hmm. No human lived past 150 yet. No human older than 100 has bone structure similar to subjects… no danger from exposure… implants appear act-"

"WHAT!" I bolted upright, the feeling of an electric shock blasting along my spine, making my hair stand on end. It was obvious he was talking about me, and I know that I never had any implants of any kind. Confusion spread across my face as he turned to face me. "What do you mean… implants?"

"Gave you biotic implant, also L3 amp. Cognitive implants appear to be working – you understand me, yes?" without having time to answer he continued, my face contorting into surprise. "Good, also did surgery on you, removed redundant organs like appendix, tonsils and gave bone and skin weave – makes it easy to live on variety of planets."

I was struggling to keep up – I had brain implants… and new bones and skin? I looked down – my skin was the same – even if I did feel as stiff as a rock and was aching all over. Suddenly there were new voices outside the room and suddenly the door slid open, the same hiss filling the room with sound before two men in… Alliance military uniforms stepped in. "N-No… Really? Admiral Hackett? Captain Anderson? Uh… What're you doing here?"

They looked at each other in surprise and then Anderson stepped forwards; I just looked up at him, the hint of a smile on my face. "My ship is the one that found you floating around the eezo core of the Arcturus relay. How are you feeling?" the concern in his voice wiped the smile off my face and worry took its place.

"What d'you mean? I'm mean; I think I got thrown into a different reality… a different time maybe… I'm confused, I ache everywhere… And if this is what I think it is, then we're all gonna be in for a world of hurt." I was out of breath already – I'd only said two sentences and my chest felt like it was going to collapse, my head felt like it was going to burst and I could barely move the rest of my body. I felt like I needed to hide in a corner somewhere, where I wouldn't be found.

"Well, we were about to head through to the Citadel, when our scanners picked up a small anomaly next to the relay's core – that was you. We had no idea how long you'd been there, but you were practically encased in eezo, which I assume is what kept you safe for so long… Anyway, we picked you up, then turned around and came here. My whole crew wants to know about you."

"As will the rest of the galaxy if they find out about you," Hackett's grizzled voice filled the room "So, you are going to be joining an Alliance programme. We can always use knew soldiers and the galaxy isn't a safe place for anyone that doesn't know how to fight." My mouth hung open; I was having difficulty taking in everything and I just nodded at everything that was being said, my mind racing but nothing going in.

* * *

A few days later and I found myself in front of a desk with a man in military dress behind it, waving his omni-tool in front of me. "How old are you kid?" His voice was gruff, not hostile, but definitely not friendly.

"I'm seventeen, I've been told to come here by Admiral Hackett." I could see his eyes narrowing and scrutinising me. Before he opened his mouth I knew what he was going to say. "Yes, I am the 'discovery' and my name is Greg. Ok? Can you just sign me on so I can start?"

His eyes widened as he realised I was speaking the truth. He read, and then re-read a message on his omni-tool. "S-sure, just go on up the stairs then hang a left, and take the third door on the right."

"Thanks." I didn't bother looking back at him as I followed the man's directions, heading up the stairs. When I got to the door it opened and I found a room full of soldiers. This was gonna be even worse than school… I let out a sigh and drop my eyes to the floor as I walked to the corner of the room – away from everyone else. It had been ten minutes now, all I had done was sit in the corner of the room, feeling every pair of eyes watch me, hearing the hushed whispers of the soldiers. Occasionally I thought I heard the shifting of armoured parts next to me, but I shrugged it off. Everyone was wondering who I was, that much wasn't hard to guess, but every time I lifted my head to look around them I met their suspicious eyes as though I was staring into the eyes of tiger about to strike.

Fortunately, the doors opened then and Anderson walked in – with _Shepard_ behind him. I felt my jaw hit the floor, knew my eyes went wide as I saw him for the first time. It really was him… 1Captain Anderson interrupted my reverie. "For most of you, this will be your first training exercise for the N7. For those of you who have been here before, this is going to be a different. I'm sure you've all seen the newest member," All eyes pointed at me and I looked down, avoiding anyone's gaze. "Well, we're going to see what he can do – he's going to be on his own against all of you, training rounds only people, I don't want any injuries out there. You have thirty minutes to prep."

At that, everyone left the room. Everyone, except myself, Cpt Anderson and Shepard. I was in complete shock… going against N7 operatives…. They seemed to sense this and Shepard spoke, his voice rough, yet calming somehow. "Don't worry… Uh… Greg, was it?" I just nodded my head, eyes wide as I turned to look him in the eyes. "All you have to do is point and shoot. Do you have any weapon preferences?" I didn't reply – I couldn't reply, I felt as though I was being sent to my death even though I knew I wouldn't be properly hurt. "Ok then… do you have weapons training at all?" he said, Anderson behind him shaking his head in slight despair.

"Well… kind of." Their eyes lit up "When I was in school I was instructed on rifle use, and I was pretty good at archery." They shared a look of confusion.

"Archery? Kid, no one has used a bow and arrow in combat for god knows how long, and the only ones in use now are for deer hunting on enclosures." Shepard looked dismayed "Well at least you 'kind of' know what you're doing."

That was when Anderson stepped in. "C'mon Shepard he's only seventeen, at least he's got something. It's more than most have at his age." Then he turned to face me. "We've got some armour ready for you by the training grounds; unfortunately it might not be quite the right size. There's an armoury on the way, you can tell us what weapon you want to use from there as we pass." He looked back at Shepard who let out a sigh, turned on his heel and headed down the corridor. With a flick of his head Anderson gestured me to follow.

Fifty minutes later and I was cowering behind a crashed shuttle in the training grounds, some slightly too big armour and an M-8 assault rifle cradled in my arms. I had died around five times already – without 'killing' any of the actual N7s, and that was within ten minutes of starting the first round. I was trying to be smart this round – a somewhat new tactic. I had gone right four of the previous times, so I tried starting left. So far, it had worked. I hadn't died for nearing five minutes – although I hadn't killed any enemies. My thoughts were brought into a sharp focus by the sound of at least two booted pairs of feet coming from the right-hand side of the shuttle. Instinctively I moved as quietly as I could to the other side, poking my head around the corner to check if there were any coming from that side before moving swiftly around. I could hear them now, not quite able to catch any of the words that they were saying, but the definite murmur of voices. I saw some cover that I might be able to make to if I was careful.

Getting down as low as I could without being on my belly, I made my way to the training room wall with a wary eye behind me as to make sure I wasn't detected while I was moving. That was when one of them called out to the ominously quiet room. "We know you're in here kid. You can't hide for long." So. They were taunting me, getting cocky. I shook my head as I moved further around the training area. Because there was a small squad searching where I started, I counted three of them, it meant that there had to be another small squad of about five… plus some others who might be scouting the sides.

I was right. Well, at least about the scouts. Two of them had come to the side of the room that I was on now. I had to be especially quiet now – or very, very quick. I chose quiet, so I stayed very still behind my piece of cover. I could hear them moving towards me though, searching every nook and cranny. Being thorough was obviously a military trait that had been developed in this universe as well. I had to act or I would lose. Again. I launched myself into a firing position, using my cover as a base and fired. One down. The other one had reacted faster than I could change aim. He'd gone for cover and I had to move. He knew where I was and would tell the others – then I would be dead in seconds. I ran sideways, my gun facing where I had watched him disappear. As soon as I was behind a different piece of cover I knew I would pretty soon have them all on me no matter where I was. They would have heard the gunshots and backup would be arriving now.

I moved again, cover to cover, I was now in the most realistic video game ever (And I'm not talking about Mass Effect – because now that was my reality). One down – and if my memory was right I still had about 8 or 9 left to deal with. I had to move – try to get to the other side of the room undetected so I could fire on them all at once if they thought I was where I had shot their teammate. I was in luck. There was a doorway to a corridor that led right across the terrain – I could flank them if I could get to the other side. I started to head through the corridor just as one of the doors opened at the far end. Trying to be stealthy about where I was, I flattened myself against the wall, not quite fitting in between two supports in the wall. Leaning out I just managed to see a figure disappear. He became nearly invisible – except for the occasional dim flash of light that the cloaks power source gave off.

I ran up to where I thought he would be and I brought my gun up – only to have it hit him in the back on its way up. "Surrender?" I said, hoping that I wouldn't have to shoot to give my position away, my voice wavering as the word fell out of my mouth. The cloak disappeared and standing in front of me was… a woman? I mean, I knew women could be in the N7, but I hadn't seen her when I had gone into the room some fifty minutes ago. It took a moment before I realised she would've been the one shuffling in her armour next to me. This was just unreal…

"Good job kid. So. How'd you find me?" her voice was loaded with sarcasm and I knew she wasn't going to do as I asked.

"I used my eyes." I fired again. Two down. I looked into the room that she had gone into – nothing to hide behind in there. "Shit" I cursed under my breath as I tore out of the tunnel my head flitting left and right, looking for cover, looking for the rest of the N7. I saw cover first so I just ran – then I heard some shouts from behind me, quickly followed by shots which pocked the ground and cracked the air around me me. As I neared the cover, I slid around it, the shots still pinging off of the rock that I was crouching behind – they were keeping my head down as the others moved around – watching so many action films was beginning to pay off. There was a slight pause in the firing – I took that as my sign to run, so I did. There was no real cover, save for a corrugated metal sheet that was lying haphazardly on the floor, it would have to do.

I picked it up, having to pause briefly to put my gun onto the magnetic plate on my back so I could hold it with both hands. Each bullet that hit the sheet made me feel as though I was going to be thrown off my feet completely, each pang making me stumble slightly. A sudden thought occurred – if I could make it into the room, and prepare an ambush (me hiding against the wall basically) I could at least take out a few of them before the end of the round. I dropped the sheet and made a beeline for the corridor I had found earlier. I could feel the sweat beginning to pour off my brow as I ran as fast as I could; I even dived through the doorway when I thought I wasn't going to make it. But it wasn't enough. Two of them were at the other end of the corridor already and before I could move again I had been shot, the round over and my heart not just racing, but exploding with each beat, each pulse pounding like a drum within my head.

I just managed to huff out a "God Dammit" before the two soldiers started laughing in near hysterics. "What?" I panted. "What's so funny?"

The rest of the N7 had joined them now, partly because the round was over, but partly to investigate the raucous laughter that the two were emitting. "You did good kid" He managed to keep a relatively straight face while he spoke, but his voice crossed back into laughter as soon as he finished. "I'm sorry" He wheezed. "It's just; I don't think we've ever had a recruit who's been that willing to dive, head first, in an oversized hardsuit through a door." His voice trailed off, the beginnings of a tear in his eyes, his expression partly disbelief, partly surprise, but mostly he was still just laughing.

* * *

I'd been here almost a month now. The New Year had just passed – of course, I didn't have anyone to spend it with, so I wandered through Vancouver – it serves as a kind of Earth Capital because it's where the Alliance's government is. I had gone through similar training exercises nearly every day, but the strange thing was, that I was _enjoying_ it. I was actually having fun – probably more fun than I could say I ever had at school. But that didn't stop me from missing all the people that had been taken from me. Now that there was what seemed like a galactic break for the start of the new standard year, I had had time to reflect. And I didn't enjoy it. I knew I would never see any of my family again; never see any of my friends again. My parents would be in tears and they'd be trying to get the police involved in a search, but it wouldn't be any use. There was even a girl at school I had gotten close to and was going to take her out… but that would be impossible now.

I was trying to get away from my broken thoughts, and ambling through the streets was the perfect way to do just that. I was encapsulated by the design and the scale of the buildings – most of which were brilliant white which light up nearly every shadow in sight. Then there were the starships coming and going, black dots against the sky mostly, but there were a few that I could see – a lot of them were bulky – then I remembered that they were the same design as frigate ships from the first game. If you got near enough to them, or stood at the right angle, it looked as though they were made entirely of glass.

I saw him then. He caught my eye and then waved his hand as he walked into a shop. Hesitantly, I made my way across the street to the shop he had gone into. He didn't look the same without his armour on – he wasn't even wearing alliance uniform – but it was definitely Shepard. When I entered I saw him sitting down in a quiet corner – apparently it was some kind of coffee shop going by the amount of iced buns behind glass panels and types of hot drink that I had never even heard of before.

When I got to Shepard I sat down opposite him "Hey, what're you doing here?" My voice was full of energy – though it was only because I was sitting with Shepard now. The Skyllian Blitz had happened, but it wouldn't be too long before he was made into a spectre.

"I'm fine, Greg. I actually came here to look for you, I don't usually go out just for a walk, but you certainly took me on one." When a smile began to appear on his face I realised I must have looked like an idiot, just staring at him blankly.

"Uh… So why'd you come looking for me, Shepard?" Anxiety swept across my face, but his smile just got a little bit wider, a little bit warmer.

"Well, if you don't mind, I would like you to join the Normandy's crew – of course you'll need to have some more training but I think you're nearly ready." He was being… sincere. He wanted me to be on the Normandy…. I felt as though I might explode from excitement. The buzz was literally killing me, but there was a sour note.

"Shepard…" I wanted to tell him everything I knew, everything that could possibly change the course of the future. Though I couldn't do it here, not now. "It would be my honour." His smile spread across his face, his eyes lighting up.

"Excellent. You might think I'm crazy, but I think you know one hell of a lot more than you're letting on and I want to use that knowledge when things go out the airlock." My mind was racing - how the hell could he know? I was about to open my mouth in confusion when he spoke. "I mean come on, right? Nearly two hundred year old teenager comes out of a friggin relay – then knows people's names, names he shouldn't know at all… you have to know more about what's happening."

There was a long pause. I really didn't want him to know anything. At all. But he obviously had an idea that I knew something… I guess there was no fooling the world's greatest operative – for me anyways. "Well… yeah, I do. But I won't tell you anything until you get a mission to Eden Prime. Deal?"

He looked both disappointed and pleased with himself. "Fine. But I want to know everything when you tell me."

* * *

I was on the Normandy. Nearing four standard months later and I still hadn't helped Shepard once; he had had a few missions with Kaidan and Jenkins. They had done all the fun stuff while I stayed behind and practised. I sparred – each time I got better and better, still not quite as good as Shepard though. I improved my aim with pistols, sniper rifles and assault rifles. I even jokingly put in a request to have a 'modern' compound bow manufactured. I learned how to create pull and throw fields with my basic biotics. Whenever I wasn't training I learned – about the ship, space travel, hacking, anything I chose there was someone on the ship who knew what I needed. Still, nobody knew what I knew. I chose to sit next to the mako for most of my time on board – but I liked to go and chill with joker in the cockpit whenever he wasn't piloting through relay jump or taking Shepard planetside. Joker really was as sarcastic, possibly even more so than he was in the games.

"You really gotta be so nosy in h- DON'T TOUCH THAT!" Joker was trying to be as intimidating as possible, and even though both he and I knew that he couldn't hurt me without doing at least twice as the damage to himself, his shouting worked.

I stared at him wide-eyed for a moment before I spoke softly to him "Why not?" Now he was looking wide-eyed, as if I was a complete idiot.

"That would have ejected the ship's eezo core and you don't do that carelessly, because you could pretty much deep-fry the entire crew." I was stunned; they didn't have friggin safety measures for that kind of thing? That's when he burst out laughing and my realisation spread across my face. "You idiot, you really fell for that one didn't you?"

"Yeah, of course I did, who the fuck else shouts like that unless it's serious? Come on though, what does it actually do?" Joker tried and failed to hide the smug look on his face.

"Oh it's just the shutter control – you don't seriously think I like to fly the ship using only the scanners do you? You just don't get that awesome feeling of flying through space." I shook my head, a chuckle escaping my mouth as I exhaled with relief that I hadn't just been about to obliterate several decks of the Normandy's crew.

Joker stiffened and the smile went from his face. I turned to see what it was he had seen, and Anderson was walking through the CIC, heading straight for us, he was holding something big – I could see sharp angles with curves… "Captain, is that what I think it is?"

"Yeah, we had our scientists test out different materials and power supplies and we've done it. There should be a target in the cargo bay for you to practise in – but only use the plain black arrows 'cause they're good old fashioned ones. The others I'll have to take you through at some point. But for now, there you go." I was astonished. A Goddamn bow in mass effect, I really wanted to thank Anderson but as soon as I opened my mouth, he held up his hand. "Look, Greg, I need to speak with you" his voice lowered to a murmur, "about Eden Prime…"

I gave Joker a final glance before I was taken by the arm and lead through the CIC down to Anderson's quarters, where we found Shepard waiting. "I suppose I should have expected you to tell the Captain, Shepard." Our eyes met briefly and a sly smile crept onto his face.

Before another word was said though, Anderson started the interrogation. "What do you know of the mission?"

"The mission will be a test of the Normandy's stealth systems, but of course, with Nihlus on board even the crew don't believe that. No, it's really about the Prothean beacon that was discovered… I'm guessing only a couple of days ago." Shepard's face was unreadable, but Anderson listened with wide eyes, checking his omni-tool every so often to see if I was right.

"Are you sure you haven't been briefed by anyone?" I shook my head at Anderson's question. He was in disbelief that I could know so much already. "Ok then, what can you tell me about the actual mission?"

I gathered my thoughts momentarily, trying to remember as much detail as possible. In all, I think I spoke for half an hour, explaining every detail – the Geth on the planet, Jenkins dying, Ashley Williams, the husks, Nihlus' real incentives, Saren, the beacon. Anderson wanted to know more about what it contained, so I told him, it wasn't a weapons archive or anything like that. It was a message, sent across Prothean space warning their race of the Reapers. But that warning wasn't enough.

After I had finished speaking there was silence until the doors opened and Pressly came through. He sensed the charge in the air and cautiously began to speak. "Uhh, Captain, we've passed into the sol system and Nihlus is waiting for us in the Vancouver spaceport. We'll be there in a few minutes."

Anderson nodded as Pressly spoke. "Good, I'll be in the CIC shortly Pressly." What I loved, truly loved about Anderson, was how he treated everyone as an equal, how he was so friendly with everyone – well, everyone except Udina, but he was a stuck-up prick so that doesn't count. Pressly turned and briskly walked from Anderson's quarters. "Listen, Greg. If you're right about any of what you say will happen on the planet, I want to know everything that you know."

I gave a slight nod, my eyes unfocused, staring into an empty void. My thoughts were racing, things would change if I told him everything, but I would need to tell it all. Maybe it would make a good change; maybe it would make things worse. Suddenly there wasn't any certainty in this universe, as I felt everything shift around me.

* * *

It was all in motion. The entire ship was buzzing with nerves, but it still somehow maintained the professionalism that dedicated practice and years of hard work gave a crew. I knew what was happening. After a day of preparations docked in the Vancouver Spaceport, we were heading through Arcturus relay, Nihlus on board the Normandy, myself waiting for Nihlus and Shepard to arrive in the comms room.

Nihlus was first. He was startled that I was in the room. "I don't know you, but whoever you are, you need to leave. I have business with the commander to attend to." His voice was slightly gravelly, a Turian accent – the slight echo within his voice, only just audible when he spoke.

"Look, Nihlus. You might not know me now; you might not know me later. But what you'll end up doing, is thanking me for what I'll do. Besides, I know what you're talking to the commander about." He looked irritated and confused, something that made me chuckle slightly because of the speed of his vibrating mandibles. He ignored my smile and conjured a feed of Eden Prime onto a screen that he was now staring intently at. It was only a few moments later when Shepard walked through the door.

"Shepard, you're here. I was hoping you'd be here first, but it looks like that wasn't going to happen." Nihlus' eyes were like daggers as he turned to look at me before carrying on. "We need to talk."

"What about?" It seemed as though Shepard had forgotten everything that I had spoken to him the day before. He couldn't have forgotten that quickly, could he? It wasn't long before I found out though. The conversation continued as I had heard nearly a thousand times before, but when Nihlus tried to explain he was there to evaluate Shepard, he just shrugged and casually said "Yeah, I know. Greg told me everything."

"Who th-" I interrupted Nihlus with a wave of my hand and an upwards jerk of my head. "Right. And how is it that you know any of this? I don't recall a human with access to the council's private chamber, or one with Spectre status for that matter."

"Let's just say that if you survive the next… four hours or so, then I'll tell you everything." Although my voice wasn't threatening, his eyes still narrowed as though I was making a threat. "Don't worry though. I'll be keeping you safe." He scoffed at my little joke but everything was interrupted by Joker announcing the message sent from the planet's surface. The video crackled to life, replacing the extraordinary view of the planet. Explosions, plasma fire and assault rifle fire filled the room, and then the camera shifted to the sky, just as a ginormous hand-like structure came falling through the clouds and then the video feed ended.

"Joker, reverse and hold at 38.5." The feed sped backwards until the black behemoth hung in place, only partly visible through the cloud layer.

Everyone in the room stared at the screen. "Sovereign." I muttered. All heads turned to me. I gave an exasperated sigh. "You know, one of the reapers? The one who has indoctrinated Saren?" Shepard and Anderson's faces changed to realisation and anxiety at the same time. But Nihlus just carried on staring at me.

"What do you mean 'indoctrinated Saren'?" His voice was filled with curiosity, his eyes however, were shrewd, even if they were heavily inset like all Turian's were.

I sighed, heavily. One way or another I was gonna have to get used to telling this story. "Sovereign, the big black space-ship is a reaper. A group of ancient synthetics that complete a harvest cycle roughly every 50,000 years. They are very powerful and have developed the ability to alter a person's will. Saren came into contact with Sovereign and has been tricked into believing that aiding them will let make the Turians become servants, rather than be completely obliterated, which is complete and utter shite if you ask me."

"I see." He looked even more confused than before. I just shook my head and exhaled heavily. What a waste of breath. One of the council's top agents and he had no idea of what the galaxy holds. Such a shame.

Anderson interrupted my thought process then with his orders. "Shepard, tell Alenko and Jenkins to suit up. We'll be there shortly." He took me to one side and whispered quietly as Nihlus and Shepard exited the room. "It looks like what you've said is true. I don't want to make this any harder for humanity to get someone into the spectres than it already is." He began to walk away but paused and turned his head as he neared the door. "Don't let Nihlus die down there. We're all counting on you."


	2. Chapter 2 A Changed Future

_**Author's note: sorry this took so long, i've been bogged down with school recently but i have a two week break coming up so i'll be able to do some more writing in that time.**_

_**I'm really pleased with the support the story has gotten so far, though i hope it will continue to grow...**_

_**remember to Fav/Follow and review with any suggestions etc., if you would like to see something happen within the story, PM me or write it in a review.**_

_**I hope you enjoy this changing future...**_

* * *

I hit the ground running.

Nihlus would be nearly five hundred metres away by now because I had had to be dropped in with Shepard, Jenkins and Alenko. While the three looked out over the canyon we landed by I tore away, racing as fast as I could. Nihlus would definitely make it to the local spaceport meaning I didn't have to worry about him unless he reached it without me. I just had to find out a way to reach it first to stop him. I didn't want to test out a prototype weapon when so much pressure was on me, so I just took my pistol. I was good enough with it now that I could snapshoot when standing still and be fairly accurate if I was moving – fortunately though, my skills weren't tested as I followed the path Shepard would go down. I didn't follow it for long. I ran to the edge of the path and saw a ledge about ten metres down. It would have to do. I turned to see Shepard following, with Jenkins and Alenko at his flanks.

"Keep him safe." I didn't speak loudly even though they were more than fifteen metres away. I knew Shepard at least had understood because he nodded at me just before I launched myself backwards of the ledge. I heard a couple cries, but I wouldn't stop to answer them. I had to find Nihlus.

I soared along the narrow ledge until it opened up into wider, much more solid ground. A quick check left and right and I was running again. I had never been so out of breath in my life, but I knew I had to keep going if I was to save his life. I heard the characteristic plasma fire of Geth weapons. I just hoped that Shepard had managed to keep Jenkins alive this time. A little further on I found Dead bodies, lots of them. I was on the right track then. I carried on past them, and then it came into view, the monstrous black form rising up, its peak piercing the lower clouds, it was partially blocked from view by trees, but it still managed to take what little of my breath was left away. A moment passed and I remembered that if it left before I reached the spaceport, Nihlus would be dead for sure. I had to get there. My eyes darted, scanning for a way down to the port. And then I saw Nihlus coming into view on a thin path, heading towards the spaceport.

I found a way down. I jumped, my legs aching with every movement, but my mind pushing them, forcing them to move. He was about to die and he didn't even know it, I had the power to save him and I would do something with that power. I reached the bottom of the hill, nearly too late. I could see Nihlus moving slowly to the crates that he would die next to. I couldn't think of anything else to do. I summoned the blue flames that covered every inch of my body with power and launched a nearby canister into the air. I aimed. It fell. Time seemed to slow down as I pulled the trigger, the kick of the futuristic weapon feeling as though it would shatter my hand into a million pieces. But it had worked. The shot had blasted straight through the container and it exploded into a hail of red hot metallic chunks and a blast of air that seemed to shake the ground. I ran to a small piece of cover. Nihlus wasn't next to the spaceport entrance anymore, although Saren was. I stared intently at him, making sure he wouldn't end up killing Nihlus anyway, but he turned and walked briskly away.

I let out a great huff of air. My lungs were on fire – it felt as though each time I inhaled, I was breathing hot ashes through a straw. I began to choke and sputter. I sat, defeated against my cover and closed my eyes until I felt a shadow cross my face.

"And just what in hell do you think you're doing here?" It was Nihlus. He was alive, and he was scolding me for it. Typical spectre attitude I suppose.

"Look, Nihlus. You may not know it, you may not believe it. But I just saved your fucking life. Saren is behind this attack." I wheezed heavily between every few words. He was about to argue but I spoke again. "Why the hell do you think he isn't worried by the Geth attack? Or the fucking great big ship that's behind you?" As if on cue, a terrible noise was emitted from it as it steadily rose off the ground, constantly gaining speed. "Can you just trust me?"

As Nihlus contemplated my argument I took the chance to remove the fountain of sweat that had built up on my forehead through my exertion. That was when four figures, silhouetted slightly against the bright sky appeared at the top of the hill.

"You did your job Greg. Well done." Shepard's comforting voice rang in my ears. I let out a bark of laughter and shook my head when he had finished speaking.

"Yeah well, I nearly didn't save this guy's arse at all…" Nihlus looked at me contemptuously. "I see that you've done half of yours as well." At this everyone including Shepard looked confused. "Really? You don't remember? We gotta defuse four bombs placed by Saren and co. then you," I pointed at Shepard as I spoke "gotta get the information from the beacon. Saren will have already activated it, so you just need to get near it."

"Who the hell is this kid commander?" It was Ashley Williams. I looked at her and rolled my eyes.

"I'm new in town." That got a little chuckle from Shepard before he started to talk tactics. There were six of us now that were able to fight instead of only three. I told them where the Geth would be (three around the corner, and around ten including the Destroyer on the train), and where the four bombs would be. Then we moved. Getting to the beacon went like a blur. I didn't even pull out my weapon – although I did launch a few Geth platforms through the air with the occasional throw or pull field.

Then we were there. It was… amazing. Unbelievable. Nihlus and Shepard were talking to the Normandy while Alenko and Jenkins were scavenging parts from nearby lockers and dead Geth. I just looked out over the spaceport's edge, leaning on the railing. We had only been there a few minutes; Shepard was giving a report to the Normandy before he would activate the beacon. And then I heard her. She was grunting quietly, her feet struggling to hold her back from the beacon. She had activated it. "What the fuck are you doing Ashley?" I shouted as I ran towards her, pushing out of range of the beacon. She stared at me, scared but angry.

And then I was weightless. My body was not under my control as I was levitated several feet off the floor, everyone watching now. Then I stopped rising and it began. It was not something I want to remember, but it was something impossible to forget. The images were not being shown to me – they were being scorched into my brain, contorted, twisted, unreadable. I couldn't help but scream in pain. I wanted to tear out my brain but I couldn't move my limbs to do so. Then it stopped, my muscles were still contracting uncontrollably as I began to fall limply to the ground. Fire engulfed me and I couldn't see to see.

* * *

I was… drowsy. I couldn't remember what had happened exactly, but I could feel an echo of the burning sensation I had felt. I sat up with a groan as my body ached when it moved. It felt as though my eyes were rolling in their sockets – I couldn't see anything with any clarity and I couldn't stop them from looking in different directions every two seconds.

"Ah, Greg. How are you feeling?" it was Dr Chakwas. I fell back onto the bed with a muted thud and exhaled heavily.

"I've been so much better. My head hurts, by body aches. I think I just need to sleep." When I looked at her, she smiled and I couldn't help but return it.

"Well, I don't think I've ever seen a Krogan who's been through as much as you have in the past few months, so I'd imagine that you could do with a good rest, but you're fine physically and mentally, although I did detect some abnormal beta waves and rather a lot of rapid eye movement…"

"Uh… yeah that'll be because of the beacon." I paused, she looked interested but I didn't want to divulge too much information to her right now. I felt as though the only two people I could really trust at this stage were the Commander and the Captain. As if on cue however, Anderson walked through the doors with a smile on his face.

"Well done kid, Shepard and Nihlus are in the citadel chambers right now, presenting their case that Saren is a traitor." His smile faded as I didn't reply, I just looked at him with anxiety.

"Sir, I'm fairly sure that the council will not accept Saren as a traitor even with Nihlus there. I gotta go… recruit some people – if their case does gets through the first time, then we're going to have a lot of important people dead."

"You mean someone will try to assassinate the council?" Of course. The obvious response anybody would have given when I said 'important people'. But they weren't important. Not really. They could be replaced with the next best political asshole that their races could provide. I meant Wrex would likely die, killed by innumerable C-Sec for killing everyone in Chora's Den and Tali would get killed by the assassin's fist sent to meet her in the alley next to the bar and Garrus would probably fail to keep Dr Michel safe from the thugs.

I chuckled softly. "No. Not the council. I'll explain everything to everyone when I get back. Just, try and get a hold of Shepard and get him to contact me. I'll be back soon." With that I leapt from the bed, sped out the door and to my locker where I punched in the code as quickly as I could. My suit wasn't one of the bigger, more protective ones that Shepard wore; it was sort of a mixture between Jacob's from ME2 and the hardsuits that Shepard wore in the final two games. I quickly pulled it on and grabbed my bow. It would be quieter than a pistol if I needed to use it, but I still took my pistol as well. I pulled a strap out of the locker, wondering what it was. Then I realised somebody had given me a visor. I pulled it on and information came up in front of my eye; pull strength, a reticule, an arc shape, arrow type, shield strength. It was for my bow… handy, I thought to myself.

I raced back up and out the airlock. And I was hit by the immensity of the Citadel. It was unfathomable. Nothing in the games gave it credit, it seemed to be twice as big as it appeared in the series, and uncountable number of lights dotted each arm, creating brilliant patterns travelling along each one, reaching right the way up to the tips.

My head turned as I saw the elevator appearing, Shepard exiting with the others. "Brilliant!" They were taken aback by my exclamation. "Did the council accept that Saren's a traitor?" the question was met by the dropping of heads and a murmur of noes. "It's ok guys. I know what to do. Shepard, you're coming with me, pick one other person to come, but do it quickly." He nodded at Ashley and I rolled my eyes. Of Course he would pick her wouldn't he. "Fine. Back in the lift you two, everyone else report back to Anderson – except Nihlus, you can do… whatever it is you do."

All eyes watched as we went back down, descending to the C-Sec academy on the Citadel. "So what the hell are we doing kid?" Williams. Of course.

"Listen, I may only be seventeen, but you need to stop fucking calling me _kid._ Seriously, it's fucking annoying." She stared at me, open mouthed. "Anyway, we're going to collect a Krogan, a Turian and then you're going to go to Chora's Den while I go and rescue a Quarian. Any questions?" Shepard stood there with a smile on his face, nodding at my instructions. But when Ashley went to ask something, he held his head in his hands and she stopped to look at him. "Ashley, don't ask any questions right now, do your job and follow orders like a good soldier."

We reached the bottom of the elevator and the time it took for the doors to open fully was infuriating. When we finally managed to exit the lift I swivelled my head, looking for the big red form of Wrex. He was on the left, surrounded by C-Sec guards. They were all looking tense, trying to be as threatening as possible, but they all knew if he wanted to Wrex could probably kill all of them in a heartbeat. The bored look that he wore on his face seemed to echo this, it said; I'm doing this for formality, nothing more.

The three of us headed over to the gathering and I pushed the C-Sec officer who was trying to be the most intimidating out the way, to the amusement of Wrex. "How old are you, Human." His deep voice was amazing to hear in person. It seemed to bounce off every surface in the large room, even though he was talking quietly.

I smiled lightly. "My name is Greg, I'm seventeen." That got a surprised look from C-Sec, and a burst of laughter from the red giant. "I know you're here to kill Fist, and that the Shadow Broker sent you to do it because of Fist's betrayal." Wrex widened his blood-red eyes slightly, before narrowing them into a hard stare. I looked back, trying to stay as calm as possible in front of the towering beast. "You're going to come with us and help." This got outrage from the C-Sec officers. They started to shout at me, but I gave Wrex a small nod and he moved to stand between me and the officers. They wouldn't try anything in a confrontation like this.

We walked out of the C-Sec academy and went straight to Dr Michel's clinic. I knew that by now, the thugs would be there, Garrus sneaking up to them, so I pulled my bow from my back, drew an arrow and stepped through the door. My visor coloured threats red, and the aiming guide helped me get on target in only a couple of seconds. It felt as though the arrow released with the crack of a bullet as it broke through the air, then through the shields and finally the armour of one of the thugs, but the only noise it made was the thwack of hitting the target and the sound of a limp body hitting the floor. Everyone turned to look at me, even Garrus who was nearly in position. I drew another arrow, and released. Another crack, another crumple. The thugs near the doctor had been taken care of, and she ran and hid behind some shelves. I looked at Garrus and nodded at him. He spun from his position and took three shots before two more thumps hit our ears.

"The hell is that?" The familiar Turian voice that I knew and loved filled the air with incredulity. "I wasn't expecting any backup, let alone a Krogan and a human who can kill without a sound." His eyes were filled with suspicion.

"Don't worry, Garrus. I'm Greg; I believe you've met Shepard and Ashley. And this here is Wrex." He looked at the four of us, a dumbfounded expression on his face.

"Look, I know you dislike Saren, and if you come with us, we'll have a chance to stop him once and for all. We need your help. You know you don't want to work with the red tape C-Sec puts around you, so come with us. We'll have the first human spectre shortly and you can be on his team." He was confused, I knew what he wanted, even though he hadn't explicitly said anything. He began to nod and opened his mouth to speak, but there wasn't enough time for any of this. "Excellent, let's go. Shepard, you know what to do."

Nobody came anywhere near us. I was next to the great hulking reptile; he must have been eight feet tall compared to my six. But I wasn't scared of him now. He would be an ally until Saren was dead, when he would go to Tuchanka and begin rebuilding the Krogan race. We parted ways when we neared the 'Gentleman's club', the four of them with weapons drawn as they moved to take fist.

As soon as they were out of sight I heard gunfire. But there wouldn't be any of that from me if I could help it. My bow drawn, I crept through an alleyway, down a short set of stairs. I could see red light pouring in through the other side of the alley. As I neared the alley's exit I began to hear a Quarian talking, followed by a menacing Turian voice. I was nearly too late. I readied an arrow and loosed it, hitting the Turian on the brow plate, shattering it and launching him across the red room. There would be two Salarians, faster, agile but nothing I couldn't handle. They were searching for the direction their Turian boss had been hit when another arrow soared into Salarian armour. Just one left now. I could see the alien shake, he realised where I was now, but because the alley was dark, he couldn't see me at all. I stood and walked with another arrow readied into the light of the room. "You can live or you can die." My voice was calm. I had taken lives today, but it hadn't really sunk in yet. I guess I was just going off adrenalin or something. Maybe I was too used to killing that kind of person in video games to really care about their lives… But I couldn't be distracted now. He hadn't replied, but was shaking more furiously now. "Just leave, what the hell is wrong with you?" He nodded, and I didn't release tension in the bow until I saw the door he left through closing.

I turned to look around the room, but it was apparently empty. I but the bow on my back and called out. "It's ok, Tali. I'm not here to hurt you."

* * *

We were all in the council chambers now. Udina was in front of the six of us, lecturing us about political ramifications and shit storms and other things he usually got worked up about in the games. Tali began to speak, she was five years older than me, but right now she seemed like a scared child, not the twenty-two year old I knew her to be.

I caught her brilliant eyes flashing my direction when she thought she wasn't being watched, only to have them flash away just as quickly. She was fidgeting with her hands, her nerves showing themselves in the clasping and unclasping of her hands. I turned my gaze away, over to the pink-leafed tress in the council chambers. They made the room seem peaceful, tranquil. Ironically it never would be. This room is for politics and politics alone. I sighed and moved to sit under the nearest tree, closing my eyes as my head rested against the familiar plant. I must've been there for quite a while because the next thing I knew Shepard was walking down the steps, a determined look in his eyes, followed by the others.

"Hey Shepard, how'd it go?" I was dozy and couldn't quite stifle a yawn as I rose to my feet. His face relaxed a little as he saw me, but I could see it was all a façade, he couldn't hide anything from me.

"Well, Tali's information changed their view on things, and Nihlus suggested that I be made a spectre immediately, to take Saren down. By the way, for some reason he wanted to speak to you on board the Normandy." I couldn't help but hide the smug look on my face – I had known that Shepard would be the first human spectre, but having it really happen, and me being the one who told everyone it would… unreal.

"Yeah, I suppose he would have a few questions for me. But I said told Anderson I would explain everything to you all when I got back to the ship. So, Nihlus will have to be there because I do not want to have to tell everything twice."

Shepard nodded once. "I understand." He spoke quietly, directly to me before loudly calling "Move out everyone." As he walked quickly away, the others trying to keep up, myself hovering momentarily before jogging to catch up.

The journey back to the ship went quickly, despite Shepard going around the presidium several times to make sure he'd bought all the equipment we needed and to help a few people with various things. I wasn't concentrating on any of it though. All I did was follow the crowd, staring into space, gathering thoughts, gathering memories. I must've looked like I was in a trance, because even when we stopped for Shepard to go and talk to someone, all I did was stand there, my eyes blank, shifting in and out of focus as people walked in front of me.

When we were all on board the Normandy, we all met in the comms room: Anderson, Shepard, Ashley, Kaidan, Jenkins, Chakwas, Pressly, Adams, Wrex, Tali, Garrus, Nihlus and myself. Not being a particularly big room, it felt even smaller now as everybody jostled for space – everyone except Wrex who growled loudly if anyone got within arm's reach of him. When everyone had settled, I stepped into the middle.

"So, I don't know if any of you know this, but I'm not from around here. About five or six months ago I was on holiday in America, in the year 2013. I found what I think was some sort of relay and the next thing I know, I woke up to find myself in this universe, the year 2182. Well, in my universe there was a series of games called Mass Effect. So far, your lives have followed the story to those games. Shepard – did you live your childhood on different ships while your parents were off on tour?" A nod. "So then you must've beaten back the slavers and pirates alone during the Skyllian Blitz." He cocked his head slightly, but nodded all the same. "Kaidan, you spent how many years training on Jump Zero during your time in BAat?" No reply, but I moved on anyway. "I've already changed the course of the universe, not by being here, but by saving Nihlus and Jenkins. I'm scared that it will change for the worse, and believe me, that is a definite possibility."

It felt to me as though I spoke for hours on end, nobody asked any questions, they just listened to the story. They listened to the events of Noveria, Feros and Virmire, the atrocities of Cerberus, the horrors of Shepard's death and the collectors, they listened to what I said about the Reapers, about The Relays, the Citadel, the Protheans, the Crucible. Everything. Every detail I could remember from my hundreds of playthroughs. Everything would change now. Nothing could be the same.

Everyone was quiet for a long time. After a moment Wrex stood up and left, everyone except for Ashley, Anderson, Nihlus, Shepard and myself followed after a moment's pause. The atmosphere was tense. Ashley was looking at me with a mixture of incredulity, suspicion and anger. Shepard looked as though he was in a state of shock – all he did was watch the floor intently. Anderson was nodding slightly, it seemed as though he believed my story, but how much of it I wasn't sure. Nihlus… I didn't know what to make of his expression.

"So…" It was Shepard who spoke, his voice diminishing into little more than a whisper with each word. "I die… Twice."

"No." I tried to keep my voice soft and calm, although I could feel myself shaking. "That might not happen anymore." I crouched down so I was at his eye level. Ashley began to speak, but I was focused so intently on Shepard that I didn't hear her words. "Look, Shepard. Things have changed. Nothing was clear, even in my universe. Everything was down to a choice in the end. Each one would change the future; sometimes radically, others, nothing you would notice. It was always you that made the choice, always you who dealt with the consequences. You always survived until the bitter end, and there was only a hint of sweetness when the dust settled if everything was perfect. You always know how to inspire people to be their best; always know what to do in each situation. Let me help you, and maybe it'll all work out differently."

His head rose so that he was looking straight at me, his warm, grey eyes peering into mine. "Greg, if you weren't here right now… I… I'm not sure what I would be able to do."

"You would do what you always do Shepard." I noticed Ashley had stood up and was now peering over us, listening intently to our conversation.

I glared at her as I turned and left the room. I never really liked either of the two Virmire characters. Ashley was always so stubborn had a fucking annoying voice, I liked Kaidan more but he just seemed like some guy… not a soldier that you'd find on board the most sophisticated Alliance ship ever. It didn't matter anymore though, they would probably both end up surviving now that I was here to help Shepard. I sulked back to the crew quarters, and lay on my bunk, waiting for something to do, time drifting painfully by as I watched the hustle and bustle of the ship around me in solitude. Waiting for our destination.


	3. Chapter 3 Taken

_**Author'snote: Thanks for putting up with the lack of story and for the positive response the story has had so far. I had a severe case of writer's block but i'm back on track now :) Don't forget to put forward any suggestions etc, and fav/follow if you enjoy!**_

* * *

I was lying awake in my bunk that night.

The ship was eerily quiet, usually there was a subtle hum from the over-sized engine in the back of the ship, but everything was completely silent now. Not even the engineers were moving around, their gentle clanking usually lofting up from the lower deck at all hours of the day. But not now. I couldn't tell how long I spent lying there as the silence echoed around me and the only light came from the low-level emergency lighting on the floor of the ship.

I had been asleep far too long, and I had woken up in a cold sweat, damp clinging to my skin as I had startled myself awake with thoughts of my old life. What would I give to go back there? I had no idea. But I thought to myself about what I would give if I were there, to come here: almost anything. To be a part of the most dangerous, the most exhilarating journey of not a single man, but of a team… my head rang with thoughts – memories mostly, but none of them pleasant. I shattered the stillness on the Normandy with the quiet clang as I heaved myself from my bunk onto the metal flooring and padded my way through to the kitchen.

"I need a drink." I was muttering to myself. Not the best thing, but I was my company at this unearthly hour, so it would do. As I walked into the kitchen area, it was totally empty, worse than the collector attack empty as at least everything was still lit and there were a few people moving around…

After pouring myself a glass of cold water, which I immediately chugged down, only to fill it up again. Sitting at one of the empty tables, I checked my omni-tool. I had several unread messages and it was two thirty in the morning. Great, just what I needed; to be up when no one else was, to be stuck with thoughts of 'home' and to be on a ship as silent as this was. I checked the first message – it was from Anderson.

'14.22.2183

From: Admiral Anderson

To: Greg

Greg,

Info from Admiral Kohaku says that his men were nearly led into a trap by a distress beacon placed on a Thresher Maw's nest. Your Intel got to them just in time it seems. I've been hearing good things about you from Shepard, but I need to take you away from the Normandy for now. Next time you're on the Citadel, come and find me.

Anderson.'

What could he possibly want? I've told him everything I could, everything I remembered from that distant past. I suppose I would find out eventually, but sometimes it's difficult to wait for something, you begin to worry, anxiety sets in and next thing you know you're having migraines. But I wouldn't think about that. I was just going to take everything as it came, even if I did know the story of the next three years.

Time passes quickly when you're thinking. I'd read all of my messages – mostly upgrades from Alliance HQ and Anderson's message, there was one from someone else though, someone I didn't recognise from my time here.

'14.22.2183

From: J_Harper

To: Greg

We know.'

I was stuck with that one for now. It could have just been a mistake, a spam message maybe. But something told me that whoever it was, and whatever they knew… They wouldn't be friendly. My eyes snapped up as the first pair of boots came round the corner. It was Garrus; up early to calibrate, I suppose.

"Hey Garrus. Sleep Well?" Even though I couldn't see his skin under the plates on his face, somehow he still had dark circles under his eyes. He hadn't noticed me sitting at the table and he was taken by surprise when I called to him. I was only asking in case his night had fared better than mine though somehow it didn't look as though it had.

"Oh Greg, it's you. I didn't see you there, and no. I only managed to get thirty minutes of uninterrupted sleep. I've been put into a crew quarters with Wrex and Tali and Wrex snores SO loudly. I imagine his night was wonderful."

The idea of Wrex snoring made me chuckle slightly. "What about Tali? Isn't she complaining?"

"Well at first she turned off her audio receivers, and then she found the silence disturbing. So to answer that, she sleeps better because of it… Which doesn't help me at all, but I've got some calibrations to do now – who knows maybe I'll even get some proper sleep in the main battery?" His face glowed with optimism at the thought of sleep.

"Well, I wouldn't bet on it, we should be nearing Therum any minute now, Liara will be there and I'm sure Shepard will want you there. There'll be Geth and I think two Krogan, so nothing your rifle or the mako can't handle."

He looked at me oddly, as though I was speaking a strange language. Despite that the differences were obvious (not only was he an alien, but he was already in full armour, while I was just in a pair of loose shorts), it felt as though we had established a strong sense of camaraderie, if not friendship. I only hoped that it would get stronger with time.

"You know Greg, I would like to call your knowledge a gift, but sometimes it just freaks me out how you know so much stuff." He had turned away to the fridge as he spoke.

"You know what though Garrus? I don't know anything anymore. My path has changed, as well as everyone who's on the Normandy. And that scares me." It was nice to have found somebody I might be able to call a true friend in Garrus. After all, I had spent a lot of time making sure that he had survived all the way through the series – he lived longer than Shepard did then, but hopefully that wouldn't be necessary.

Garrus leant into the fridge and pulled out what looked like a tube of puree and got himself a glass of water. "Is that nutrient-paste stuff and good?" he stopped and looked at the tube he was holding.

"No, but at least it means I'm not going to die of hunger." A bleak statement and the conversation had died. Garrus just took his meal over to the battery controls and began to eat with the tube in his mouth, the water on the floor. As more and more people started to file into the mess hall, I left.

I went back to my shared quarters and started to get dressed into my armour. Better get ready now, just in case I was needed later. Besides, I wasn't even in a hardsuit. It was an odd hybrid – although my armour did remind me of the kit from something like Ghost Recon, but now it was made from different materials, stronger and far lighter, as well as being more flexible. It was a shame I didn't have the tactical cloak installed into it though, it would come in handy.

As I was checking my visor, I heard the door open and I looked up slowly to see who it was. Shepard. "Greg, I have to wonder… How're you holding up?"

"I'm fine. I didn't sleep last night but other than that I'm alright."

"Yeah Garrus said something about you being in the mess before he came up, alone. Do you want to talk about it?"

"Well, I was just thinking of my old life. Dreaming would probably be a better way to put it. And then I woke up and went to get a drink. That was at two thirty."

"Two thirty? What were you thinking about? You've told us so much about ourselves, but we don't know anything about you." That was true, as much as I had told them about this world, all I had said about me was a vague description of how I had ended up floating I space, a million miles from Earth.

I shifted uncomfortably. "Shepard, I'm very introvert… But… Well I miss my family, my friends and all that. This is… It's just… It might be too much for me. You know? I mean come one… I'm still at school for fucks sake. At least I was anyway… I just need time to think, to sort out my life, my priorities. I don't have any family now. And the only people I know are on this ship or will be in the next two years."

"I understand where you're coming from Greg. I don't have any family either." I looked at Shepard shocked. I always thought he would be a Spacer in real life… "There were four of us. My parents, myself and my little sister. I'm sure you've heard of it… but Terra Firma is a group of extreme xenophobes." He paused as I nodded my confirmation. "I was six when they were taken from me." Another slight pause. "We lived in Seattle and there was an Asari singer who'd come to do a tour of Earth. My Dad worked in politics, and managed to get us all seats. From what I remember it was a great show… But then a group from Terra Firma came and detonated a bomb outside the concert hall. It was bloody. Two hundred humans dead, countless injured. And for What? The Asari was barely injured." He shook his head disapprovingly. "Damned idiots."

I was slightly in shock, but also felt some comfort that the greatest humanity had to offer was in a similar position to me… If he could do it, then then the least I could is try. I left to leave the room, but turned as I neared the exit.

"Thanks Shepard, I'll think about things. I've got to leave you after we get Liara, so when I get back, I'll be ready."

* * *

Geth were everywhere. There silver bodies were tinted red from the volcanic lakes and rivers that covered the planet. Liara would be inside the mines, trapped in a Prothean stasis field. Garrus held his sniper rifle to his eye and the bullet went through the glowing eye of one Geth and took out a lot of circuitry from another standing several feet behind it.

"Shot Garrus! Now, let's see what I can do with… this!" It was a cluster arrow that Anderson had prototyped with the bow. There were enough Geth grouped together to try it out effectively. Garrus looked slyly at me out of the corner of his eye as I raised the bow, drew the string and let my visor take care of the aiming. I released the tension and the arrow flew out, the wind whispering in my ears. In half a second, a group of twelve Geth had been punctured multiple times by the tiny tungsten spikes that lived inside the arrow head. It took a moment but the all fell to the floor, the glow fading from their eyes.

"You aliens and your cowardly weapons! This is how you take out more than one enemy!" Wrex's deep booming voice tore across the battlefield and I looked up in time to see his enormous form charging through across the dusty cliff top as three Geth crumpled under his weight before he brought up his shotgun and blasted two more before grabbing a final one by the 'throat' and ripping its innards out, sparks flying everywhere.

I looked at Garrus and we shared a look that confirmed Wrex's craziness. In perfect time, his maniacal laughter rang across the planet surface as the last Geth fell to its knees.

Shepard called us all in now. We were in front of the mine entrance. Garrus, Wrex, Tali, Ashley Kaidan and I were grouped around Shepard as he went through tactics. Wrex and Kaidan were going into the mine with him, so me Tali, Ashley and Garrus would be outside on watch. That was fine by me; it gives me a moment to rest, to relax in a hostile environment.

Apparently though, Ashley wasn't comfortable with me around. "Shepard, don't you want to take the new kid with you? He _does_ know everything."

"Hey fuck you Ashley, at least –" I was cut off by Shepard.

"Enough! Both of you be quiet. Ashley, at least try and get along with him. You remember what you said earlier?" She looked down and nodded. I stalked off to stand away from the group, nearer to the edge of a nearby lava lake.

I had no idea what her problem was with me. I hadn't done anything to her… Maybe she was just jealous that Shepard was giving me attention because I didn't belong here as such, and she desperately wanted Shepard to love her.

I sat down on a dusty rock nearby, staring at the swirling patterns of light and dark of the molten lake and watching the rising heat waves distort the air above it. I was there for only a couple of minutes when I heard footsteps coming up behind me. I realised I had been idly playing with some stones, so I chucked them into the lake with a pleasing sizzling effect. It reminded me of meat on a barbeque…

I was brought away from my reverie by Garrus who'd set his rifle down on the rock and sat next to me. "Greg, I don't… normally do this, but, Do you want to talk?"

"Sure ok, what did you have in mind?" I was hoping that he didn't want to talk about what had just happened, but if that's what he wanted I had to try and make a long-lasting friend out of somebody on the Normandy.

Fortunately he didn't. "You know you said Shepard died the other day… and that I go to Omega?" I nodded in reply, my eyes looking at the floor. "Well… What happens? Exactly?"

"Ok. So, after Shepard died, well, you go after a drug dealer – Kishpaugh is his name – and then you rescue an elderly human couple from a Vorcha thug… They start the Archangel nickname by the way." He nodded, listening intently. "So, you know… You get stuff done on your own for a short while, then, you find Sidonis – another Turian. You save him and he joins you, eventually you have a squad of I think twelve? Sidonis gets caught however, and betrays you and your men. You go to a specified location while the Blue Suns kill your squad. Then they team up with the Blood Pack and Eclipse merc groups to take you out. That's when Shepard arrives."

It was a while before he spoke again. "Is it really that bleak?" I looked at him sideways. His mandibles were hanging loosely, drooping and his plates looked sunken.

"Come on Garrus. You're the most badass Turian in this universe, and you're worrying about what would've happened?" He looked at me in shock. "You go to Omega to try and make it better. You're a good person, and you may not know it, but you inspire others along the way. I know your father doesn't believe it, but you are a good Turian Garrus. You really are."

"How do you know about my… Never mind." Just then the ground grumbled and began to shake.

"We need to get back – Now." We ran back to the mine entrance, Tali and Ashley had been chatting until we arrived, then Ashley gave me a sour look which I didn't bother to reply. "Have you contacted Shepard?" They looked at me blankly. Great.

I pulled up my omni tool and set it to Shepard's a frequency Shepard would receive. "Shepard, do you read?" A crackled response came through. I tried to clear the static from the connection manually, and after a minute of tweaking, it was clean. "Shepard, was that the mining laser or have you got Liara out yet?"

There was a second's delay. "Greg, we're coming out of the mine now, Liara is with us. Your Intel was solid. Joker should be bringing the Normandy in now." There was a simultaneous roar from as the ground shook from the building pressure, and the air cracked as the Normandy came overhead. At that moment, the door to the mine shaft opened and the four of them poured out.

"Come on!" Shepard's voice called as the large group made its way to the gaping hangar doors of the Normandy. Once we were all on board Shepard told Joker to get us off-world, and he managed to do so just before the lake we had been standing by minutes before erupted in a haze of bright yellows and oranges. Shepard's voice rang out once again. Triumphant. "Mission Accomplished!"

* * *

It was back in sight now. The familiar behemoth of the Citadel, visible through the nebula it was situated in. I was next to Joker in the cockpit watching the blue shifted light bounce off the hull as we approached. He started the docking procedures and I turned around. Better get ready.

I walked to my locker and started putting on my armour, grabbing my weapons. Better to empty it out in case I needed something that was on the ship later. I fitted my sniper and my AR to the magnetic slots on my back and holstered my Carnifex handgun to my hip before fitting my bow onto my back. I must've looked weird. Armed to the teeth, and without a known uniform… People were giving me looks on the Normandy; I wondered how people would react when they saw me on the Citadel.

Ten minutes later and we'd pulled in to dock. Shepard had ordered everyone to take a day's shore leave, so everybody but the maintenance crew had left the ship by the time I resurfaced to the CIC and walked calmly out of the airlock, and onto the Citadel. Anderson was waiting for me there, Shepard standing next to him.

"Greg, Shepard tells me you've been an invaluable asset to his team. I'm sorry I have to take you away for a while, so if you want to tell Shepard anything now…" He looked questioningly at me, and I nodded, my eyes meeting Shepard's. "Very well, I'll give you ten minutes. Come meet me in Udina's office when you're done." He turned and walked away. It was odd seeing him in civvies. He just didn't suit them somehow. It was as though he was made for Military gear.

"Shepard, where do you think you're heading next? Feros or Noveria?" I looked at him patiently, yet expectantly.

"Well, I was going to ask you actually. I wasn't sure what the best course of action was."

I sighed quietly. "Ok, well normally I go for Feros first, because you get two birds with one stone on that mission – you save the colony and you can get Tali some Geth data for her pilgrimage. Noveria is slightly harder because of the Rachni."

"Ok then." He looked around quickly. "What happens on Feros?"

"So as soon as you arrive a man is blasted by a rocket Geth – you could probably save him if you're quick. Then, you follow the pathways until you get to the colony Zhu's Hope. There will be a frigate in the centre. Talk to everyone – you'll need to restart things like water and electricity but it's not difficult; it's only a few Geth blocking the way. After that, take a mako and head to the ExoGeni building. You should pass some refugees on the way – knock out the employee, otherwise somebody ends up shooting him. Speak to all of them before moving on, there is a mother there who asks you to find her daughter and somebody needs some computer data recovered from the building, there are loads of Varren and Geth inside the building." He nodded occasionally and his eyes flitted around every few seconds, but he remained attentive, eager to learn more about what was to come.

"So what happens next? Where's Tali's data?"

"You need to remove the Geth ship from the building by finding the faulty shutter – it's guarded by more Geth and Tali's data is on a console in that room. Then you need to deal with the Thorian. It's over fifty thousand years old and has indoctrination capabilities – I'm sure I told you about it though didn't I?" He nodded gently, his eyes unfocused as he remembered.

"Right. Thanks Greg. I'll let you go now – stay in touch, let me know if you're having trouble or anything like that." He smiled broadly at me and I couldn't refuse to smile back. I turned and left him outside the Normandy's airlock, a smile plastered on my face.

It was only moments later that I found myself in Udina's office, Anderson and the 'Ambassador' waiting patiently for my arrival. As soon as I arrived Udina snorted quietly. I hated this guy, not only is he so snobbish but his voice grates my nerves, and I feel as though I want to punch his stupid nose flat against his face with a biotic fist. I scowled at Udina as he turned and went to sit behind his desk. Anderson beckoned me over and I obliged, happy to turn my back on Udina.

"What's this about Anderson?" My query was not unexpected, yet it still made Anderson lost for words.

"Listen carefully. We're going to let events play out, to keep them as close as possible to the story line you know. That way, we know what's coming." I understood his reasoning, but… why? Shepard DIES. "Now before you say anything, I know Shepard dies, but he has agreed to let things go as they are. He believes it's the best course of action – and I'm inclined to agree."

I was devastated. "But how long will we follow events? I know – YOU know what's coming. We need to prepare, if not against the Reapers, then against the Collectors at least. You've heard the saying 'power is knowledge'? Well right now, we might just be the most powerful people in the galaxy. It is our duty to do something with that power."

"I know how you feel Greg, but this wasn't up to me. The board wanted to know what's coming their way in the next few years so they can begin preparations. It doesn't sound right, but it's only after Sovereign is destroyed that we as a race get targeted. So for now, we're safe - if only just."

I couldn't believe this. It was wrong. All wrong. Nothing was changed; Shepard would still die at the hands of the Collectors and be fixed by Cerberus. Even after all I'd said they weren't listening properly. "Well now I know how Shepard feels." He looked at me quizzically for a moment before nodding in understanding.

Udina spoke next, out of turn. He wasn't welcome in this conversation. "Besides… Greg." He spoke my name in disgust, as though he thought I was somehow beneath him, despite his short, weedy stature. "You're here to be integrated properly into society. It's imperative that you do so, so you can see how things are run around here…" He took a moment to look down his nose at me, before I turned back to face Anderson.

"So… what do you want me to do exactly? Start living a normal life?" Udina nodded in approval. "I… I can't do that anymore. Maybe before all of this, but now… I can't go back. There's no point if in three or four years I'll be twenty, maybe twenty one and I'll be back in the Alliance helping the war effort against the Reapers on Earth. You can't stop me Udina." He scowled at me, but I didn't care. Hopefully he wasn't aware that all the people on the right side knew he would try and betray the council to Cerberus, but when he did, I wanted to be the one.

"No, he can't Greg. But you need to do this. At least for a week, just to see how things go." I was defeated. Sent away from where I wanted to be, from where I thought I belonged. "You can use my apartment," He looked slyly at me "You know your way around it already." He chuckled gently.

I sighed heavily, the air rushing out of me. "Fine. I've got all my stuff, let's go."

* * *

It was gorgeous, it was lavish, it was… distracting. I didn't want to be here, and yet I was enjoying myself. I was surrounded by the crimson décor of the apartment, at least I was sleeping properly now. My mind was far from my old life, even though it was still there, like a small scratch in the back of my mind.

It was a few days since leaving the Normandy, and I hadn't heard anything from Shepard yet. I decided to right him a message.

'Shepard,

I hope everything is going well on the Normandy. I'm missing out on the action, but Anderson has a really nice apartment here, right in the middle of the wards.

Let me know when you're next on the Citadel, so I can rejoin you guys.

G'

I stared out the window briefly and remembered what Garrus and Zaeed had been saying… Too open, hard to defend… The window was too big. I chuckled under my breath as I leant over the balcony railing. Who in their right mind would attack an apartment in the middle of a ward? Maybe some mercs who'd been paid handsomely or an assassin. But I wasn't exactly likely to get either of those after me just yet.

I ambled my way into the kitchen area and started pulling out ingredients for lunch, then I heard glass shatter. I peered round the open fridge door, curious, when I saw soldier's dressed in white, a familiar logo on their armour. Of course…


	4. Chapter 4 Back Home

_**Author's note: We passed the 500 and the 600 views boundary with that last chapter, so i felt the need to get this one out as well :) I hope you enjoy!**_

_**Don't forget to Fav/Follow if you enjoy and/or post a review if you have any suggestions or want to see something in particular.**_

_**Enjoy!**_

* * *

"Shit." I cursed silently. Why the hell are they here? Whatever it was, I could tell I didn't want to be a part of it. Cerberus was bad news; it didn't matter if they were going to rebuild Shepard.

I had to get my stuff without being seen… The stairs were only a few metres away. Hopefully I could sneak past them without them seeing me. I edged my way along the counters, staying below the top so I couldn't be seen. I peeked around the corner. There was a squad. A small op but I'm sure they wouldn't be the useless goons that Cerberus usually threw at Shepard. I looked around once more. Most of them had moved into the bar area, and a couple were milling around by the enormous TV.

"It's now or never…" I chimp-walked to the base of the staircase and then, as low as I could, I started to move up the stairs. I kept a keen eye on the Soldiers I could see, but it would be harder once I had rounded the corner on the stairs.

"Hey!" Fuck. The voice was... electronic. I peeked under my arm to see two soldiers running towards me, they had come from the bar and I hadn't seen them. Fuck. No point in being quiet now. I felt as though I was flying up the stairs and I ran into the bedroom; it would be easy to hide and take a couple out if they came in through the door.

"We know you're here kid. Come out and you won't be hurt." Yeah right. I stayed put, trying to calm my erratic breathing, quieting the noise that I was making, giving me away. A spindly, black gloved hand gripped the doorframe and I readied myself. Blue Flames sparked to life around me, and my hands itched for a fight. She came through the door quickly then and I lashed out, the force exploding around my balled fist.

She screamed in agony but it was cut short as I felt her crumple against the wall. I panted heavily with fatigue. I wasn't ready for this; I was fighting a squad with biotics on an empty stomach. Never a good idea, as you run out of energy VERY quickly.

I began to see what had happened. I had just knocked out a girl. Well, there goes the no hitting girls rule. She was really pretty as well… She wouldn't be very pretty for a long time though. Her face was already swollen and disfigured. No time to dwell on it though. I had to hide in a different place, or they would find me for sure. Peeking out of the doorway, I was too late as a white plated hand grabbed my neck and brought me round the door frame. The next thing I felt was pain, quickly followed by a burning numbness. A black veil covered my eyes once again.

* * *

I couldn't see when I woke up. The room had no light source at all. I could feel my hands bound to the chair I was sitting on, my chest was bare but I had my comfortable bottoms on at least. This was an old style interrogation. I just hoped that they weren't going to use any of the old style torture methods either. But knowing Cerberus, anything was possible. I tried to move my hands; I struggled against the links to the chair, but to no avail.

"There's no point in doing that, you know." The electric voice echoed around the room. It was still pitch black, but I was beginning to see shapes, two of which was distinctly human.

"Whatever you want, you won't get it from me, dickhead." I tried to fill my words with as much venom as possible. That was when a switch was flipped and a whirring noise filled the oddly still air. I was sitting under the glare of what felt like the brightest light in the galaxy.

"How very noble of you." This was a different voice. A woman's voice, with a thick Australian accent.

"Miranda? I wasn't expecting to see you for another two years?" What the hell was going on? My eyes once again were beginning to adjust to the intensity of the light. The two figures were standing at the edge of the light, but I could see them both. It was her. Miranda Lawson. She was fucking _hot_. Shame about her face… She stood silent still her arms crossed. She looked expectantly at me. "What?"

She nodded to the person next to her, he'd been further back, but now I saw him. It was just a soldier, except he wasn't. He was holding bolt cutters. "We thought we'd get a little nostalgic if you didn't answer our questions." My eyed widened, they were insane. They had to be bonkers.

"Ok, hold the phone there." I was beginning to sweat profusely as dread filled my soul. "What do you want?"

"Well, I want payback for smacking me in the head and breaking half my face. But the Illusive Man wants you to answer some questions." Well shit. I'd hit 'the perfect human' in the head and broken her jaw and her cheek bone as well as bruised her eye socket. Her face became more and more visible. Most of it appeared to be healed already, but it was still extremely puffy and swollen.

I tried to my hands again, a little more subtly though. I wondered if I could slip my hands through the shackles if they got sweaty enough. The thought made me chuckle slightly. It didn't go unnoticed. "SHUT! UP!" I was knocked sideways as the soldier swung the bolt cutters and hit me across the face.

I wasn't going to be put down by some nobody. I started laughing again, harder this time. "You know, that's not how you use those." I managed to wheeze the joke out. I thought I heard Miranda chuckle a little over the roar of the soldier. I didn't regret it, despite the boot in my stomach. I coughed and spluttered as I regained control of the convulsions my muscles were making.

"Enough. You can hit him again when I say so." Miranda sounded deadly, but I could both see and hear the ghost of a smile in her words. The soldier stood to attention before lifting me off the floor and putting the bolt cutters over his shoulder and marching away with them to the edge of the light. As he moved away, Miranda moved nearer. I swallowed loudly as the clicks of her high heels got louder. She moved around behind me and laid her hands on my shoulders. "This doesn't have to be hard you know."

I was still slightly winded from the kick that had landed on my unprotected stomach and my ragged breathing quickened. Her hands moved down onto my chest. Now my breathing wasn't just ragged because of the kick. I closed my eyes and breathed out hard. I had to control my breathing. If I focused on that, everything would fall into line.

"Is this getting a little too much for you, Greg?" She whispered into my ear, her mouth on the tip of my ear. I had to think of other things, so I turned my mind to Anderson. He would kill me when he found the mess that was his apartment. She pulled away abruptly, keeping one hand on my shoulder as she walked to my front. "What're you thinking about?" she asked innocently, but it was a poor attempt at flirting.

"You're so bad at this you know." She looked slightly angry at me now. She nodded once behind her. I rolled my eyes at her, "Jeez don't get too upset. Fucking psycho." I waited for the hit to come. When it did it was from behind, not only did it hurt like hell but it surprised me as the cutters came around and hit the side of my head, once again knocking me to the floor. I cried out in agony and then whimpered quietly as blood trickled down the side of my neck.

It took a minute before my breathing was back to normal. I could already feel the swelling on the side of my head. "You better not fucking hit me with that again or when I get out I'll rip your balls off and feed them to a Krogan on a silver platter you fucking prick."

Miranda looked at me, bored. "Are you finished? There's no way you're getting out of those cuffs. The Illusive Man's done a lot to make you… feel at home. They were made just for you." I just scowled darkly at her. They really had gone all out. They were classic handcuffs, they needed a key to unlock but luckily the part that enclosed your wrist seemed slightly too large. I might be able to wrench at least one hand free if need be.

She continued to speak at me in a patronising tone, but I wasn't listening. Not until she stood up straight and slapped me round the face when I didn't answer. I could feel the colour rising in my cheek. That hurt. She placed her hands on my knees and leaned in, our faces level. She spoke quietly, "What is Shepard doing?" Her body was really distracting; I kept snatching glances below her chin. She was… unbelievable.

My brow furrowed as my gaze reluctantly turned into her deep blue eyes. "You managed to find out where I was, who I am and yet nothing about what Shepard is doing? Do you think I'm stupid or something?" How could they know about somebody who'd been hushed up since arriving, and not know one of the most public things about humanity's greatest and possibly most advertised?

She moved again, she kept her hands on my knees, but crouched down, a more comfortable position I presume. "You must've heard me wrong." She snapped her fingers in my face as my eyes drifted down… "I asked you; what did you tell Shepard, not what is he doing."

I was confused, and really distracted not just by Miranda either; the pain in my head had faded into an ache but I felt really dizzy now. "Uh…" I swallowed. My head was spinning. "Do I really have to tell everything to you? I mean… I really can't be bothered to repeat it all." I sniggered.

"Do you want to get hit again, or do you want to answer my question." She looked deadly serious but I just wasn't in my right mind anymore. I was high on concussion and blood loss.

"I don't think I can answer that." I slumped forwards in my chair as I fell unconscious again.

* * *

I groaned loudly as I stirred, I was still in the chair and now my bum was beginning to feel sore. "Right, you're awake so let's try this again shall we?" Her voice came from behind me and I felt her hands clasp onto my shoulders again.

"You guys are really annoying, you know that right?" I didn't bother trying to look at her as I spoke. "All I wanted to do was try and fit in with society for a week, like I was asked. But oh no. Apparently, I'm not allowed to do that because of some Indoctrinated twat sitting in a chair, smoking a cigarette a trillion miles away." Her hands gently rubbed against my shoulders for a moment, before she put her head on mine, her breasts squishing against the top of my back, her hands falling softly onto my bare stomach.

"It's just us two." Her voice was a whisper. "I've given you medigel for your head, but you'll probably have a scar there." She paused, waiting for me to speak I supposed. "This would all be a lot smoother if you had just cooperated."

"Huh. As if. You know as well as I do that Cerberus doesn't really care for humanity. Cerberus cares for Cerberus. End of. And I won't be a part of that, and neither should you." My rant was over but at least I was awake now. The sleep had gone from my eyes and I was looking down at my wrists. My left hand was clammy enough to squeeze through the cuff.

"I'll admit, working for Cerberus had made me part of some… questionable activity. But I don't regret anything. I came here to-"

I don't need this. "I know why you came here, lil' miss perfect. You need get some conversational skills – I mean; I know it bothers you, but come on. Use what you're given and don't find an excuse to bring it up every five minutes." She moved away from me now. I put some more effort into getting my wrist out of the cuff, while her back was turned. Pulling my hand through the cuff was proving a little more difficult than expected. My hands were only just small enough to get through, but it felt as though I was breaking the bones in my hands as I did so. My left hand got out and it was sore, but it definitely felt good to have movement in my arm again.

I made sure that I kept my hand by my side; so that at least there was a chance she wouldn't notice I was half free. "You know Greg you really are arrogant for a seventeen year old. But you're right. I am awful at flirting." The way she spoke made me wonder what she was thinking. The next thing I knew there was a blue fist in the side of my face.

I hadn't just fallen to the floor as I had when the soldier hit me. This time I'd been sent flying across the room, the chair shattering against the wall, my back following it closely. "What the fuck was that for?" I grunted at her through gritted teeth, my now free hands tending to the swelling, aching side of my face.

"I told you I wanted payback." She walked over to me and put her heeled foot onto my chest, forcing me to lie back. She reached over to the cuffs still attached to the chair legs. Oh HELL no. I grabbed her legs and lifted her into the air. She fell with a crack, as face first, she hit the floor. I turned her onto her back, and energy coursed through my veins as a fiery fist cracked into her stomach. I might have to apologise for this later… I fled the light so I could try and find a way out of my prison, but my eyes were taking their time to adjust. I looked back over to Miranda and she was on all fours, retching. I saw her vomit once, and blood was coming out. I looked around, frantically now. I saw the glow from light leaking through the crack of a door. There.

When I reached the glow, I realised it wasn't a door, but rather a break in what seemed to be a thin wall. I took a deep breath. I heard a woman yelling at me as blue lit the room around me. I took two steps back, and threw a throw field at the wall. I wasn't sure what happened next, I was running at the wall, and then it felt as though I was being simultaneously disintegrated and reiterated. When I realised I had managed to phase through a solid object, I was already falling.

But the ground was rushing up to meet me. I had burst out of a tower on the Citadel, high above the wards. I began to panic as I struggled for what little air there was and my speed began to pick up.

It's ok. Calm. Just stay calm, and you'll get through this. My breathing slowed as I held as much air in my lungs for as long as possible between each breath. Everything became unreasonably clear as I hurtled to the fluorescent lights below, sky cars whizzing past. I saw a group of aliens in one car spot me and I saw the horrified look on their faces as they watched me plummet for a few moments before the driver turned and came rushing towards me.

I remembered how Samara had floated gracefully down from the top of a crate in ME2. How she did it, I could only guess, but I had to try. If these people had any chance of saving me, I had to soften the blow to the car.

I closed my eyes. Concentration is key. I moved into a more vertical position, but now I was moving faster, the wind rushing past my face, the cold atmosphere burning my cheeks. Push. I lit up as jets of light burst from my hands. I stopped moving momentarily, but quickly accelerated once again. Push. The sky car rocketed past me, only just missing me by a couple of feet. I don't think they were expecting me to try and stop. It stopped a few seconds later, nearly a hundred feet below me. That gives me a little bit of time to try and stop myself from crashing into the car.

The door of the sky car opened and a Turian leant out, waving at me frantically. He climbed carefully onto the roof of the car. I plummeted towards him, burning blue. One more push. My bare feet crashed into the windscreen of the car. And the whole thing jolted unstably. The Turian grabbed my arms and fed me through the door to the car before following me in.

"Are you ok?" It was the Turian that helped me into the car that spoke. They were all watching me intently, shock still apparent on their faces.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. I, uh. I need to get to the Presidium." I was sweating uncomfortably. I was relieved but…

"What did you think you were doing?" A Salarian asked me, his wide eyes vexed.

"I didn't know it was the edge of the building, ok?" I shouted at him, irrationally. "I had to get out…" My voice quietened and I started to shiver, being above the heated floors of the wards wasn't comfortable, but neither was being in a cramped car, half naked with a bunch of strangers.

Half an hour later and I was fully clothed, with a big cup of hot chocolate. It was delicious; you know the ones where you have cream and marshmallows in? Well it was one of those, with fancy alien marshmallows.

"You were gone for quite some time Greg. Are you sure you're ok?" Anderson was looking at me like with a concerned look on his face. I just nodded as I stared into space, interspersed by liquid heaven pouring down my throat. I still needed to have a shower, to get rid of the dried blood coating my neck, and the profound smell of sweat that flooded off my body. But I had to wait until Anderson said I could go back to the apartment. For now though, I was waiting in his office while he got things sorted out.

"Anderson?" His brow rose, expectant for my question. "I thought Cerberus weren't allowed on the Citadel…"

He nodded his understanding. "Well, they haven't been banned from it yet, but they certainly aren't welcome here." There was silence for a short moment. "Shepard's heard what happened. He's just trying to get Major Kyle to come peacefully and then he's coming back to the Citadel."

Five minutes passed and a beeping came from my omni tool. A message from Shepard.

'20.22.2183

From: Cmd Shepard

To: Greg

Greg, I heard about what happened. I've got to deal with this Major Kyle thing and then we'll be on our way to you. Feros was mostly a success – Liara took a hit, but otherwise everything was as you said.

Sit tight, we'll be there soon.

Shepard.'

I looked up from the message and Anderson was walking back from his desk. "It should be fine to go back now. The glass has been fixed and there'll be sentries on and around the building until you go."

"Thanks Sir… I was enjoying myself until this happened." I headed towards the door. "Maybe I would've fitted in here. But not anymore." He nodded slowly.

"It's ok Greg. I understand. This was mainly just to please Udina anyway – I know that Shepard wants you on the Normandy even if you're not going to fight." I smiled lightly before I turned to leave the room. "And Greg?" I stopped in my tracks and turned to face him again. "Don't call me Sir." He smiled and winked in a parental way. I smiled back and as I headed to get ready there was a skip in my step.

* * *

The sky is a beautiful thing. Especially at night, when the clouds a gone. You might not think about it much but nobody looks at the stars enough. I don't think it's possible.

My thoughts were drifting lazily by as I sat, fully armoured on the Normandy's dock, waiting for the ship to come in. I stared through the pale haze of the nebula to the faint drops of light, billions of miles away. I raised my hand to my head, touching the sore line cutting above my right ear, soothing it. It was odd, not having hair there anymore. I had always had short hair – I preferred it. But the doctors had all but shaved the sides of my head so they could see the damage done. I now had twenty staples in the side of my head, holding me together, running along the bright red line going from behind my ear to just past my temple.

I heard the docking clamps depressurise and shift outwards to greet an incoming vessel. There it was. The Normandy. It felt like I was going back home after a holiday. In a way, I suppose, I was. I had been forced to relax for a week – even if it only ended up being four days and now I was back to where I felt I belonged, safe from surprise attacks and with the only people in the galaxy doing something about the Reapers.

I was smiling as the airlock opened, and there everyone was. Wrex, leaning back against the inner airlock door. Kaidan and Ashley were chatting next to Wrex, they turned their attention to me when the doors opened; Kaidan smiled and waved, Ashley just glanced at me before resuming conversation. Then there was Liara. She was on crutches, her leg in a cast and a slightly green tinge to her cyan skin. Shepard rushed up to greet me, Tali and Garrus hot on his heels.

This was definitely home. Tali pushed past Shepard as they neared and pulled me into the tightest hug I've ever been in. "You… you… you Bosh'Tet! I've been – I mean, We've, been so worried about you! When Shepard told us Cerberus had taken you…" She had stepped back so she could look into my eyes, as she started to do some finger wagging.

I looked down sheepishly and rubbed the back of my neck. "Yeah well… There wasn't much I could do." Tali put her arms back around me and hugged me again, but this time Garrus and Shepard joined in. "Did Anderson tell you how I got out?"

We separated and Garrus clapped me on the arm. "No, but I'm sure it was spectacular."

"Oh, definitely one for the books." I chuckled. With that we walked slowly back to the airlock and the others. I could feel their eyes on my scar, but I don't think they wanted bring it up; afraid I might go crazy or something.

"That reminds me Greg. Anderson messaged me before we docked. He had left a package for you in loading dock 9, so we picked it up before coming here. It's next to your locker." I grinned at Shepard.

"Do you know what it is?" I asked him eagerly. But, before he could answer, Wrex's booming voice pierced the air.

"Nice scar you got there kid. Maybe one day, you'll be as handsome as me!" His grin was unsettling, especially when he patted me on the back. "You gotta tell me how you got it; all good scars have a story behind them – a good story at that." I nodded my agreement as I wasn't really sure that I wanted to compare scars with a Krogan over three hundred years old, or get on the bad side of one.

The Normandy's VI started the decontamination process and then we were on the ship, a team once again. Shepard looked left as we entered. "Joker, start a course for Noveria. Take your time though. This is gonna be a tough one to get through."

"Aye aye, Sir." Joker's response was immediate, as was the slight jolt as the Normandy left the docking clamps and we began to move smoothly away from the Citadel.

"Come on Greg, it's still in the box." Shepard led me and the rest of the team down the stairs, and then down the lift to the cargo bay. Sure enough, there was a great big metal crate in front of my locker, large Alliance logos painted on it with several fragile and warning signs on as well.

"This is exciting." I said in a rush, my words blurting out of my mouth. I scanned the crate with my omni tool and there was a hiss of compressed air being released. A heavy clunk sounded as two sets of bolts on the front slid open. I lifted the heavy lid with a slight grunt, and inside was… armour? I spotted a hand-written note underneath one of the shoulder guards.

'Greg,

This is a customised set of tactical armour.  
I would read the instruction manual if I were you.

Anderson.'

There were more bits of paper stuffed under the armour. I took off the armour I was currently wearing to put the new one on. The new armour looked fairly similar to the old one, but there were more hardsuit plates, as well as a ton more ammo pouches, grenade pockets and arrow quivers, each quiver with a small but distinct symbol on it to determine the arrowhead. "Oh this is so cool."

Frantically I pulled on each piece of my new armour. I looked back into the crate and saw two large, flat metal pieces. I took the torso piece off and flipped it over; they definitely went on the back. I put them on and a faint whine was made as the power source was injected into the armour. I put the torso piece back on – this armour felt as though it was moulded to me, it was flexible in every respect, and it fit like a glove!

When I was dressed in my new armour, a message appeared on my omni tool; UPDATE: tactical armour command module. I clicked accept and in a few moments it beeped again, signifying completion.

"I've only seen a few people in the galaxy with this kind of armour Greg, you're extremely lucky." I looked over at Garrus who was leaning against his locker, eyeing my armour jealously.

"Yeah, aren't the only military group with this tech the Armiger Legion?" He looked at me, wide eyed.

He came over to stand next to me, and hushed his voice to a whisper. "How do you know about the Armiger Legion? They're not even known by most Turian."

I stood in full armour, hearing what Garrus was saying, but I couldn't make sense of it. "Why doesn't everybody know about them? I thought they were supposed to be special ops for you guys."

"Well, they are, though they get mixed in with regular troops on dangerous missions. They only handle high risk missions though. I'm pretty sure they're on the same level as Spectres, even if they aren't granted Citadel support."

"Yeah, that's got to be one of the biggest advantages of being a spectre. The council pretty much goes with whatever you say." I was fiddling with my omni tool, trying to get my armour to work, when I spotted an icon appear in the hollow above my hand. I selected it popped up a message: ENGAGE. I clicked it and suddenly I was looking through my arm to see the crate below. "This is freaking CRAZY!" This was so cool. I could go invisible! It only lasted for a couple minutes though before a warning beep sounded and I reappeared in the cargo bay.

"Nice." Shepard had left briefly to get something to eat, and when he came back I reappeared as if by magic next to Garrus. "We can use that when we get to Noveria, you can get past a lot of the security you mentioned without being detected."

"When we get there."


End file.
